Workers threaten to launch agitation against Union Govt to protect their rights

Our Correspondent

Mandi Ahmedgarh, May 1

Office-bearers and activists of various political and labour organisations have threatened to launch an agitation in case the Union Government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, do not withdraw the labour reforms law which was scheduled to be implemented from April 1, 2022.

An ultimatum was given during the concluding session of the Labour Day celebrations at Pohir Road under the banner of the coordination committee of 11 outfits, led by Sukhcharanjit Sharma.

Speakers, including convener Sukhcharanjit Sharma, All India Kisan Sabha leader Baldev Singh Latala, Industrial Workers Union leader Gurdev Bhumbla, Mohinder Pardhan, INTUC leader Parmeshwar Singh and Madal Lal alleged that the Narendra Modi-led Union Government was bent upon to rob workers of their rights in the name of labour reforms.

“But we will not allow any government deprive us of our rights which our leaders had got for us by sacrificing their lives during labour protests commencing on May 1, 1886, in the United States,” said Sukhcharanjit Sharma, regretting that successive governments had been trying to appease their masters in corporate sectors at the cost of rights of labourers.

“Unfortunately the Union Government is poised to implement orders allowing the corporate sector to make workers work more than eight hours, without any salary raise, which is like robbing the workers of their rights,” said Gurdev Bhumbla.

Activists of eleven constituent outfits of the Coordination Committee threatened to launch coordinated struggle in case the Centre continued to appease corporate houses by tampering with established labour laws on the pretext of labour reform legislation.